Hendrix-Murphy Foundation - Programs in Literature and Language

Murphy Visiting Poet Aracelis Girmay signed her book 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘢 (2016), which is considered by multiple publications to be one of the best of that year, when she visited in 2017. In 2015, she won the Whiting Award for Poetry. Girmay's poetry explores motherhood, migration, and their anthropological effects, among other themes.

Murphy Visiting Writer Allen Ginsberg visited Hendrix in 1986. Ginsberg's poetry, which earned him the National Book Award for Poetry in 1974 and the Robert Frost Medal in 1986, is known for criticizing U.S. capitalism and war. This elaborate autograph was made in his collection of poems 𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘚𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘥 (1986).

Murphy Fellow in Theatre Andy Vaught will broadcast his play 𝘈 𝘏𝘰𝘯𝘬𝘺 𝘏𝘺𝘮𝘯 over the radio on July 4, 11, and 18 at 4 p.m. Arkansas folks can tune in via KABF 88.3 FM, and it will also broadcast in Greenville, MS and New Orleans, LA via WDSV 91.9 FM and WAMF 90.3 FM respectively. Be sure to give it a listen!

Murphy Visiting Writer Edwidge Danticat visited Hendrix during the 2015-2016 academic year. As a Haitian-American, Danticat is known for her fiction writing about migration and the immigrant experience. Its richness has earned her multiple honorary degrees and awards. This signature is found in her children's book 𝘌𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘴: 𝘈 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘪 (2010).

Are you available to attend the remote teaching demos of our two finalists for the Murphy Visiting Fellow in English position? These will occur Tuesday and Wednesday from 12 p.m. to 1p.m. Participation in these presentations will ensure that your voice is heard during our final selection and that you have a say in who your future professor might be. It's crucial that we have students to attend these teaching demos, so please say yes if you can. Murphy Scholars: you also have the opportunity to interact with the candidates via remote lunches and receive a gift card to buy your own. These lunches will occur at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday and 11 a.m. on Wednesday. If you'd like to participate in any of the above events, email hendrix-murphy@hendrix.edu by 5 p.m. 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 to receive information on the candidates and how to join.

Join us in supporting Murphy Fellow in Theatre Andy Vaught as he stages a reading of his play 𝘈 𝘏𝘰𝘯𝘬𝘺 𝘏𝘺𝘮𝘯 at Cotija's Mexican Grill In Little Rock tomorrow, June 25th, at 7 p.m. There will be 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 chips, salsa, and beer!

This autograph is by Murphy Visiting Writer David Wiesner, who visited Hendrix during the 2009-2010 academic year as part of our "Word and Image" lineup. As the author and illustrator of multiple children's books, Wiesner has been quite successful, three of his books having won Caldecott Medals. Indeed, one of the winning books is 𝘍𝘭𝘰𝘵𝘴𝘢𝘮 (2006), the book in which this autograph was made.

More autographs from our vault are on their way! First, we have Little Rock native Trenton Lee Stewart '92, who is known for his New York Times Best Selling series, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘉𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘵 𝘚𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘺. He has visited Hendrix three times as a Murphy Visiting writer and was a Murphy Visiting Writer-in-Residence in 2019. Can you tell what his autograph of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘒𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴 (2016) says?

Today we celebrate Juneteenth with Robert Hayden's 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘋𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴, a sonnet that defines freedom by recognizing one of the main figures who fought for it: When it is finally ours, this freedom, this liberty, this beautiful and terrible thing, needful to man as air, usable as earth; when it belongs at last to all, when it is truly instinct, brain matter, diastole, systole, reflex action; when it is finally won; when it is more than the gaudy mumbo jumbo of politicians: this man, this Douglass, this former slave, this Negro beaten to his knees, exiled, visioning a world where none is lonely, none hunted, alien, this man, superb in love and logic, this man shall be remembered. Oh, not with statues’ rhetoric, not with legends and poems and wreaths of bronze alone, but with the lives grown out of his life, the lives fleshing his dream of the beautiful, needful thing.

Murphy Scholar Savannah Wiegel '21 is a Biochemistry & Molecular Biology major who graduated 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘮 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦 with many departmental honors in addition to winning a prestigious Watson Fellowship. An aspiring physician, she is fascinated by the roles that storytelling and communication play in healthcare, an interest reflected in her Murphy Scholar projects: the Conway Regional Medical Spanish Translation Project, the Narrative Medicine Reading Group and Conference, a Japanese language course, a personal writing workshop, and the American Medical Writers Association (AMWA) Essential Skills Program. Savannah also attended Hendrix-in-Madrid, went on the Spanish Civil War trip in Spain, and was a Spanish House resident. Congrats, Savannah! You've played a large role in the Hendrix community, and your awards and honors are well deserved.

Murphy Scholar Rosemarie Ochoa '21 graduated 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘯𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘮 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦 with distinction in both Music and Spanish. Her Murphy Scholar projects include the Ida Burns Reading Program where she read to elementary schoolchildren, the Spanish Civil War Trip in Spain, and attending Hendrix-in-Madrid. As a testament to her varied interests, Rosemarie also earned the Hendrix Choir Student Recognition Award as well as Phi Beta Kappa membership. Congrats, Rosemarie-- may your love for language carry you far!

Murphy Scholar Kailey Miller '21 graduated 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘮 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦 with distinction in both Odyssey and her major, Interdisciplinary Studies: Political Communications. Her Murphy Scholar projects include taking Arabic language lessons, going on the Spanish Civil War Trip, attending the workshop "Tell Us Something about Yourself: Write a Great Personal Statement in 5 Days," completing a Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) certification course, and taking a Korean language course and lessons. With everything Kailey has accomplished, it's no wonder that she earned Phi Beta Kappa membership. Congrats, Kailey!

Murphy Scholar Mallory Magruder '21 graduated with distinction in Sociology/Anthropology with an emphasis in Sociology. It’s no surprise that she won the Murphy Scholars Program’s “Farthest Travelled” Award: she studied abroad in Morocco and Ghana, and while in Ghana took language lessons in the Twi dialect. Mallory also earned the Juanita D. Sandford Social Justice Award. We loved having her in the Murphy Scholars program, and are excited to see where life takes her next. Congrats, Mallory!

Murphy Scholar Quinn Carver Johnson '21 majored in English-Creative Writing and Interdisciplinary Studies: Performance Studies. Quinn's time in the Murphy Scholars Program has yielded projects such as participation in the Southern Festival of Books, an intensive study on Murphy Visiting Writers Nickole Brown & Jessica Jacobs, and attending two workshops at the Brooklyn Poets organization. Quinn graduated 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘯𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘮 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦 with distinction in both majors, and earned the Isaac Andrew Campbell Memorial Prize and the McCuistion English Prize. We hope your love for writing and performance continues for a lifetime, Quinn!

The Murphy Scholars Program is sad to bid farewell to Dr. Martin Shedd, Murphy Visiting Fellow in Classics, who has made boundless gifts of time, creativity, energy, and positivity as a mentor in the program. He has developed and led new projects, encouraged students to reach for new goals in literature and language, and supported Murphy Scholars, colleagues, and co-workers alike through a hard couple of years. Now his visiting position is over, and he’s moving on to new horizons. Martin, we will miss you hugely and we wish you all the best! The Hendrix-Murphy Foundation’s core program, the Murphy Scholars Program in Literature and Language, has an opening for a two-year position to begin this August: the Murphy Visiting Fellow in English/creative writing. Further details are available at bit.ly/3g2btfE or the link in our bio.

The Murphy Scholars Program is sad to bid farewell to Dr. Erin Hoover, Murphy Visiting Fellow in English/creative writing, who has made boundless gifts of time, creativity, energy, and positivity as a mentor in the program. She has developed and led new projects, encouraged students to reach for new goals in literature and language, and supported Murphy Scholars, colleagues, and co-workers alike through a hard couple of years. Now her visiting position is over, and she’s moving on to new horizons. Erin, we will miss you hugely and we wish you all the best! The Hendrix-Murphy Foundation’s core program, the Murphy Scholars Program in Literature and Language, has an opening for a two-year position to begin this August: the Murphy Visiting Fellow in English/creative writing. Further details are available at https://jobapply.page.link/Uwi7.

Murphy Scholar Zelda Engeler-Young ’21 is an English-Literary Studies major who graduated 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘮 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦 with many departmental honors. During her time in the Murphy Scholars Program she completed a host of Murphy Scholar projects, including the 𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘕𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦 editing project, an intensive study of visiting writer Sy Montgomery, the Roman Comedy Reading Group & Hendrix Latin Play, and the Hendrix-Murphy 𝘖𝘹𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 Editorial Internship. Zelda also attended the Hendrix-in-Madrid program, the C.D. Wright Women Writers Conference, a personal writing workshop, and the Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) Conference, and was a Writing Center Associate. When reflecting on her experience as a Writing Associate, Zelda says, "Every time that look of awe and comprehension flashed across the face of a student with whom I was working, I felt a deep, fulfilling joy that I haven’t felt in any other work I’ve done." You've been a crucial part of the Hendrix community, Zelda, and your Citizen Scholar Award is well deserved-- congrats!

O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife, Who more than self their country loved And mercy more than life! —Katherine Lee Bates, 1895 We remember.

Murphy Scholar Danielle Dilday ’21 is a Biochemistry & Molecular Biology major. Her Murphy Scholar projects include the Hendrix Latin Play, the Ida Burns Reading Program where she read to elementary school children, and the "Writing for Animals" online workshop. Indeed, Danielle's experience with the children at Ida Burns "turned out to be more than just another bullet point to add under the ‘Volunteer Experience’ section of my resume. I learned, in more aspects than one, about the true value of reading.” It's wonderful to see how Murphy Scholar projects can influence a Scholar's view of literature and language. After years of exploring what Hendrix-Murphy has to offer, Danielle graduated 𝘤𝘶𝘮 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦 with distinction in her major. Congrats, Danielle!

Among Hendrix’s new graduates are 22 Murphy Scholars in Literature and Language—students from a range of majors who share a passion for creative writing, drama, language learning, and lit studies, and got to pursue those interests with extra resources and mentorship during their time in college. Today we feature Amy Cabrera ’21. An Economics and Business major, Amy spent a lot of time in the realms of service, literature, and language. Her Murphy Scholar projects include volunteering with AR Kids Read, an internship at El Zócalo Immigrant Resource Center, and a poetic interpretation of immigrant experiences, “Los Fantasmas de Esperanza." During her time at Hendrix, she definitely made an impact as a leader, earning the Alice Hines Award for Excellence in Multicultural Leadership and Service and the Student Impact Award. Amy says that the Murphy Scholars in Literature and Language program "has offered me so many opportunities to not only embrace my own creativity, but also embrace all aspects of me into what I love of literature and language.” Congrats on your amazing accomplishments, Amy!